Peak Oil Transitions

I’ve heard a lot of apocalyptic talk around the topic of peak oil. The way society moves towards a reality of energy descent could be smooth or rough, depending on how prepared communities are. One group of thinkers, led by Rob Hopkins, who is a doctoral student at Plymouth University in England, is the Transition movement…

A key tenet of the Transition movement is establishing resilience, or the ability of a place to endure and absorb shocks – everything from food-supply interruptions to economic downturns to energy crises. The degree to which we are dependent on oil is the degree to which we are vulnerable, Mr. Hopkins says. I suppose broadly speaking, trying to support what food production exists is central. Linking producers and consumers is central. And also trying to reintroduce urban agriculture and the rethink of the land around the towns is central. Trying to move energy generation more into the control of the community is seen as very important, as is designing for the end of the private motor vehicle – its days are numbered already.

“This is much more than just a book. It is a manual for a movement. And not just any movement, but one whichin avoiding the civilisational collapse threatened by the twin crises of peak oil and climate changecould prove to be the most important social force humanity has ever seen.”—Mark Lynas, author of Six Degrees

Might be worth a look – it would be interesting to develop a scale of readiness or something for energy descent, one that could apply to homes, cities, regions, right up to countries.

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Mike Thomas P.Eng. ENV SP, is the author of UrbanWorkbench.com and Director of Engineering at the City of Revelstoke in the Interior of British Columbia, Canada.
If I post something here that you find helpful as you navigate the world of engineering, planning and building communities, that’s wonderful. But when push comes to shove: This is my personal blog. The views expressed on these pages are mine alone and not those of my employer.